- Hardcover: 256 pages
- Publisher: Anansi; 1 edition (Jan 19 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0887842089
- ISBN-13: 978-0887842085
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14.7 x 1.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 340 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #284,863 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Review
"...a story worth telling: how a good man became lost in an immoral system..." -- Quill & Quire, March 2007
"The Deserter's Tale is a very slim book, but it never pretends to be more than one man's account. Key does the math, as should the reader: If this is what one soldier saw in seven months, imagine the sum total of the inhumanity being perpetuated in Iraq." -- Toronto Star, February 11, 2007
"The case of Joshua Key . . . is unique. He is the first US soldier who actually served in Iraq to claim sanctuary from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, based on his `personal experience with atrocities' in Iraq. . . .Key will be able to raise the question of the war's legality as a defense." -- -- Michael Roberts, The Province
"The writing is fluid, crisp and compelling. The story is shocking... [told] with unflinching frankness..." -- The Gazette, February 3, 2007
"What's most engaging about this book is its essential honesty... The Deserter's Tale ought to be required reading for soldiers heading overseas..." -- The Globe and Mail, February 10, 2007
"The Deserter's Tale is a very slim book, but it never pretends to be more than one man's account. Key does the math, as should the reader: If this is what one soldier saw in seven months, imagine the sum total of the inhumanity being perpetuated in Iraq." -- Toronto Star, February 11, 2007
"The case of Joshua Key . . . is unique. He is the first US soldier who actually served in Iraq to claim sanctuary from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, based on his `personal experience with atrocities' in Iraq. . . .Key will be able to raise the question of the war's legality as a defense." -- -- Michael Roberts, The Province
"The writing is fluid, crisp and compelling. The story is shocking... [told] with unflinching frankness..." -- The Gazette, February 3, 2007
"What's most engaging about this book is its essential honesty... The Deserter's Tale ought to be required reading for soldiers heading overseas..." -- The Globe and Mail, February 10, 2007
Book Description
In this first-ever memoir from a young US soldier who participated for eight months in the war in Iraq and then fled to Canada, Joshua Key offers a vivid and damning indictment of how the war is being waged. Joshua Key is a husband and father from a conservative background who enlisted in the army to lift his family out of poverty. A year later, President George W. Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq and Key was sent to Ramadi. The war he found there was not the campaign against terrorists and "evildoers" he had been told to expect. Key saw Iraqi civilians beaten, maimed, and shot for little or no provocation. He witnessed the killing of a seven-year-old girl who was scrounging leftover army rations, and watched while the dead bodies of Iraqis provided sport for US soldiers. When Key was sent home on leave he knew he could not return to the war. He went underground, finally seeking asylum in Canada. His case is now before the Canadian courts. In clear-eyed, compelling prose crafted with the help of award-winning Canadian novelist and journalist Lawrence Hill, The Deserter's Tale tells the story of a man who went into the war believing unquestioningly in his government and who was transformed into a person who ethically, morally, and physically could no longer serve his country.
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Most helpful customer reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Finally some eye-witness truth about Americans in Iraq,
By
This review is from: The Deserter's Tale: The Story of an Ordinary Soldier Who Walked Away from the War in Iraq (Hardcover)
All the hype about "bringing democracy to Iraq" comes crashing down as it ought in this gritty story of the American army.Joshua Key was so crushingly poor that he fell for the advertising and decided to enlist to guarantee a regular paycheque and healthcare for his family. Given guarantees that he would be building bridges within the continental U.S. - they pulled that line on my friends during Vietnam, too - he was sent to Iraq six months later. The idiocy of the American campaign is made eminently clear as Josh tells in painful detail about how he never even saw the enemy - and spent his time brutalizing Iraqi civilians as directed by his officers. Iraq wasn't a haven for terrorists before the American invasion - but it is now, and the Americans are the ones who made it that way. This book will give you a good picture of life as a soldier in Iraq, and give you pause when you think about what our men are probably doing in Afganistan right now.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rare Insight - Compelling Read,
By Agatha (Saskatoon) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Deserter's Tale: The Story of an Ordinary Soldier Who Walked Away from the War in Iraq (Hardcover)
Joshua Key, a U.S. army soldier dared to think critically and he dared to follow his heart. Joshua knew that what the soldiers of his unit were ordered to do was wrong. They had been convinced that all Muslims and all Iraqis, including women and children, were the enemy. There was no separation between terrorists and ordinary civilians. Shoot first....use force....shut your mouth....follow orders....do not question authority.Soldiers were kept on edge, kept fearful and with a lack of sleep. Violence was normalized and all Iraqis and Muslims were dehumanized. At first, the nighttime house raids created a rush but as time went on, Joshua recognized the hundreds of violent house raids for what they were, acts of terror on innocent civilians. Joshua relates stories about atrocities committed by American soldiers and abuse of power with no accountability. Nightmares followed Joshua home to the states after his tour of duty in Iraq. Much anguish and thought went into his decision to not go back to Iraq. This story is well-written and is a rare look inside the U.S. military. Definitely worth the read.
5.0 out of 5 stars
one proud moment for Canadians,
By hopeful (Toronto, ON) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Deserter's Tale: The Story of an Ordinary Soldier Who Walked Away from the War in Iraq (Hardcover)
A Deserters Tale destroys the myth of the US war on Terror and the compaign to bring Democracy and Freedom to Iraq. When Joshua Key's conscience could stand no more he fled to Canada with his family. However the Canadian government has refused to accept US War Resisters. Thankfully some Canadians have welcomed and are aiding the courageous men, women and children. The book is a must read.
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